#fezgame

My Game of the Week is FEZ by @PolyTron! A 2D platformer with a 3D twist. Unlike my favorite platformers, the game doesn't actually challenge your platforming skills. The gameplay is all about exploration and puzzle solving. 1/9

What you see is a 2D plane, but can be rotated 90 degrees left and right with the triggers. Each zone has multiple doors at different angles. 2/9

I'll admit, I didn't like this game at first. The platforming controls were slippery, objectives weren't clear, and the map was confusing. But as I ventured out of the starting area, the game opened up massively, and everything changed. 3/9

Rather than move from point A to B, your objective is to simply explore as much as you can and find yellow cubes. Collecting 8 cubes creates a full cube. You'll need many full cubes to open big doors in the main area, opening up more areas to explore. 4/9

At first glance, this map is a confusing mess. However, you can rotate and zoom around this 3D map. It doesn't reveal exact locations of doors and cubes; it only shows you if you've found the area, and if you've found every collectible in the area. 5/9

It doesn't really handhold your exploration, but makes you think "let me revisit this area and look around some more" Since these are 3D levels in a 2D platformer, it's very easy to miss a spot! 6/9

When you encounter a new door that requires an amount of full cubes you don't have, you have to use the map and determine yourself where to go next to find more cubes. There's no unlockable abilities, the world design is truly open-ended. You can go anywhere! - if you can find the path that leads there. 7/9

My initial complaint of slippery platforming controls still stands, but the game is pretty generous when it comes to precision platforming, respawning you at your last grounded position, and giving platforms of relatively large size. Since the difficulty doesn't come from tough platforming, the less-than-perfect movement is fine with me. 8/9

That's the gist of the game! Not your average 2D platformer, and a great refresher for platformer fans. As for myself, I have 16 cubes right now, about halfway(?) through the campaign. Looking forward to finding more cubes. If you wanna try for yourself, get it on Steam while it's still $5! It's also on PSN and Switch, and other PC platforms. Check out their website for the full list. End of thread! 9/9

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/224760/FEZ/ FEZ website: http://www.fezgame.com

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